


the cartesian circle

by izayas



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Compliant, Feelings Realization, Fluff, M/M, it's going to be a lot of things but mostly au/canon and fluff and happiness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-19
Updated: 2018-01-20
Packaged: 2019-02-04 05:41:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12764346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/izayas/pseuds/izayas
Summary: second, logicism:  five signs he likes you, no matter how stupid he is.[a collection of short iwaoi drabbles]





	1. absurdism

_"Look both ways, dumbass."_

It makes no sense, Oikawa thinks. It makes zero sense, none at all. And yet, he has to believe that everything happens for a reason, no matter how obscure or unbelievable the reason is.

Iwaizumi Hajime is not boyfriend material, which Oikawa likes to remind him of every now and then. Oikawa Tooru's dated his fair share of girls and despite most (read: all) his relationships being short term (read: fewer than three months), he likes to pride himself as having much more experience and, thus, being much more wise when it comes to relationships. In fact, he likes to think of himself as being the most popular on the entire Seijou volleyball team and while nobody's ever argued that, they do mutter among themselves that even if Oikawa got all the attention, Iwaizumi got all the respect. Oikawa decides to just ignore the blatant disrespect by making them run extra laps as he mulls over the murmurs and whispers and side glances angrily.

That, Oikawa thinks as his arms are folded firmly over his chest, makes no sense, like many things about Iwaizumi Hajime.

First of all, Iwaizumi's always wearing way too many layers. Even when traveling with the volleyball team, Iwaizumi will be the person with not one, not even two, but  _three_  jackets, usually wearing two and having one in his bag. Oikawa makes fun of him for it all the time and then has to sulk when someone else on the team complains of it being cold and Iwaizumi hands them a jacket. 

On more than one occasion has a shivering Oikawa felt a jacket silently draped over him, looking over his shoulder just in time to see Iwaizumi walk away, hands in his pockets and wearing only a t-shirt in below freezing weather, all three of his jackets dispersed to team members. Iwaizumi's never said 'I told you so' or 'you deserved it.' If he does say something, it's that idiots can and will catch colds.

Oikawa always answers with  _"so then shouldn't Iwa-chan keep the jacket?"_  as he wordlessly clutches the jacket tighter around himself.

Iwaizumi always scoffs.  _"Bigger idiots first."_

Secondly, Iwaizumi's not fashionable. He doesn't wear the school uniform right and has once asked what the purpose of steaming a shirt is. Oikawa has a feeling Iwaizumi doesn't even  _know_  how to wear the uniform right and while he's offered over and over again to teach him (correction: dress him), Iwaizumi always wakes up late and is lucky he's not wearing his pants backwards when he gets to school. They have their first class of the day tomorrow and Oikawa's, on more than one occasion, had the pleasure of watching Iwaizumi burst in late and earn a harsh reprimand from the teacher. 

 _"What if you set an earlier alarm?"_  Oikawa's asked multiple times when they go to the bathroom together during lunch, fixing Iwaizumi's collar and hair absentmindedly.  _"Iwa-chan knows you can change them, right? Or that you can have more than one?"_

 _"Shut up,"_  Iwaizumi mumbles, frowning and messing up his collar when he adjusts it to be more comfortable. Oikawa just frowns and fixes it again, then straightens his jacket.  _"Stayed up late."_

 _"How about sleeping earlier?"_ Oikawa pipes.

Iwaizumi glares at the way Oikawa smiles because Iwaizumi's very familiar with that smile.  _"Piss off,"_ he mumbles and the way he's glares is still on Oikawa's mind when he heads off to math afterwards.

Iwaizumi's not even cute, which is why Oikawa can't believe the second most common reason for being dumped (right after volleyball) is because of Iwaizumi. Oikawa's dated some of the prettiest girls in school, girls with gorgeous hair, brilliant smiles, sparkling eyes, chiming laughter. He's dated girls who could easily pass for magazines or look like they've just stepped off of fashion week runways. Girls who not only know to steam but also to iron their clothes and wear them correctly.

Iwaizumi usually has food either on his face or on a garment of clothing, drools sometimes when he falls asleep at his desk, and is prone to premature wrinkles because of his constant scowling. Oikawa's fairly sure he doesn't even brush his hair because he doesn't own a comb. By all standards, Iwaizumi Hajime is not  _cute_ , not at all like the people Oikawa's been fortunate enough to date (and subsequently been dumped by.)

And yet while Oikawa's always been appreciative when someone dresses up for him, he's never stared at them the way he does Iwaizumi at the end of practice, when even Oikawa's taking a break but Iwaizumi keeps practicing. He can't stop staring at the way his brow knits in concentration, how he licks his lips, or the toned body revealed when he uses the hem of his shirt to wipe away a few beads of sweat. Oikawa's on more than one occasion forgotten that his lips need to be  _on_  the water bottle for the water to go in his mouth and just barely managed to save face by pretending he meant to pour water down his shirt.

 _"That's a waste,"_  Matsukawa says.

 _"Yeah,"_  Hanamaki agrees. _"That's just stupid."_

Oikawa scoffs.  _"Anyway, since Iwa-chan's still practicing, let's get back to it!"_

Furthermore, Iwaizumi is, arguably, the worst texter. He shouldn't even have a smart phone, Oikawa complains sometimes, because he does it such a disgrace by not texting. Iwaizumi always tells him to just call if it's urgent, to which Oikawa answers that he just wants to  _talk_  to his  _best friend_ , at which point Iwaizumi snaps they're almost always by each other's sides, why does he have to text when Oikawa's right next to him?

Because, Oikawa then answers dramatically, of  _emojis_.

Your entire face is an emoji, Iwaizumi will return and Oikawa's still trying to decide if that's an insult or fact of life.

Their entire chat history is usually ten to fifteen messages in a row from Oikawa of various nicknames and emojis. Iwaizumi's replies are very sparse and short. The disparity is even more illustrated upon study of the timestamps; Oikawa sends a flurry of texts within seconds of each other and Iwaizumi's short 'lol' or 'no' or 'wtf' is sent hours later. The only immediate responses are to Oikawa's more serious texts. Whereas  _'i'm bored'_  or ' _iwa-chan!!!!!!!!!!!'_  is answered with  _'no'_  five hours later,  _'can we talk?'_  is answered with  _'sure. call?'_  within minutes. 

And yet, even Iwaizumi's  _'no'_  has Oikawa's face brightening, even in the middle of an anniversary dinner. He knows full well it's rude to be on his phone on a date, but Iwaizumi texting back is such a rarity he's always managed to talk himself out of any fault. His dates, though, aren't nearly as understanding.

(Unsurprisingly, he tends to get dumped the next day.)

And, worst of all, Iwaizumi never knows when to say things. When Oikawa's upset, he just wants to vent, yell, rant until he feels better. He wants to let out his frustrations and he wants his best friend's support because that's what a best friend is supposed to do. 

But not Iwaizumi.

He's the type to head butt Oikawa, grab him by his jacket and yell at him. If Oikawa's upset about being surpassed, about it being unfair, Iwaizumi will yell at him to stop complaining and work harder. Iwaizumi's never coddled him; he's never said useless but well-intentioned, cliche phrases. He sets Oikawa straight and reminds him that he'll always be there for him. It makes him mad because Iwaizumi's always right and always says exactly what Oikawa needs to hear to get back up.

And on top of all that, Iwaizumi doesn't fully screw on juice caps, squeezes toothpaste from the middle, wears mismatched socks, sleeps like a starfish, and doesn't have an inkling of what it means to be gentle. Like just now, when Oikawa was so busy thinking about all the reasons why Iwaizumi's not boyfriend material that he started to step onto the crosswalk before the light had turned. Iwaizumi's hand was immediately on his arm, pulling him back, snapping, "Look both ways, dumbass."

Oikawa blinks as the light turns and feigns a pout, ignoring that his heart is still racing as he looks at Iwaizumi. "You could be nicer about it, Iwa-chan!"

"Yeah, but I shouldn't because you were being stupid," Iwaizumi mutters as they start walking and Oikawa immediately misses the feeling of Iwaizumi's hand on his arm. He's still frozen for a moment but then catches up easily with Iwaizumi's stride, staying uncharacteristically silent as they cross. He shakes his head when Iwaizumi quietly asks him what's wrong. They round a corner onto a less busy street; without all the chatter, Oikawa can hear his heart pounding and blood rushing in his ears, can focus on the way gravel crunches beneath Iwaizumi's steps.

It makes no sense, he thinks. It makes zero sense, none at all. Because Iwaizumi Hajime's not boyfriend material, not at all, with his crass tongue, rough nature, aggressive temper. He's got a million bad habits and only very few good ones to counter them and Oikawa doesn't have to be a math genius to know that those few positives don't offset the many negatives. They don't even come close to offsetting them and yet, Oikawa thinks it's okay that he doesn't leave the cap on because that way, Oikawa never has an issue opening the bottle. He can always get a clip for the toothpaste and even if Iwaizumi sleeps like a starfish, it's comforting to feel some part of Iwaizumi against him to remind him he's not alone. 

"Stupid Iwa-chan..." Oikawa mumbles out loud by accident and when Iwaizumi just laughs quietly instead of demanding to know why he said that, it makes Oikawa mad because he's so ridiculously understanding and easygoing at times. 

It's ridiculous and it's absurd, and yet, he has to believe that everything happens for a reason, no matter how obscure or unbelievable the reason is. He's known Iwaizumi since they were in diapers; Iwaizumi's been by his side through everything and as much as they frustrate each other, Oikawa's never regretted getting to share everything with him.

He takes a deep breath that rattles him to the core because even if it doesn't make sense, it doesn't mean it's not real.

"Iwa-chan," Oikawa starts, then his voice just stops. His feet feel planted to the ground and when Iwaizumi stops to look at him, Oikawa thinks there's no reason at all for why his heart skips a beat while his lungs stop altogether, why all feeling's left his limbs and yet he's hyperconscious of his posture.

There's no reason, Oikawa thinks, no reason at all why he should feel this way. No reason why someone who doesn't even particularly have a sweet tooth will line up for hours with Oikawa for the opening of a new bakery, no reason why someone who has yet to believe in aliens will watch a seven hour documentary, no reason why someone as levelheaded as Iwaizumi would be best friends with someone as overdramatic as Oikawa. 

The earth continues to spin because of inertia. Birds can fly because of the structure of their bones. Evolution occurred due to natural selection. All of life's biggest questions have a reason, and yet Oikawa can't find one for this, no matter how many documentaries he watches or books he reads.

Iwaizumi stares at him for a moment longer before he smiles and Oikawa swears his knees almost crumple beneath him because even if Iwaizumi's not cute, that smile is drop dead gorgeous. Iwaizumi's hair is unbrushed, but that makes it perfect for his fingers to run through. Iwaizumi's always frowning or looking annoyed, which makes a smile that much more radiant.

There's no reason, Oikawa thinks, why he feels this way for his uncute, not boyfriend material, messy best friend.

"Yeah," Iwaizumi says. He's always direct and blunt, which makes his gentle and softspoken words more earnest. He's always glaring, which makes his gazes that much more piercing. "...Me too. For some reason."

Because while Iwaizumi's messy, unkempt, and temperamental, Oikawa can be dramatic, vain, arrogant, immature, insensitive, so if there's no reason for him to feel this way about Iwaizumi, there's even less reason for Iwaizumi to feel the same way about Oikawa. 

And yet, when Oikawa takes a step forward and laces his fingers with Iwaizumi's, he doesn't pull away. He just smirks tiredly.

"Shittykawa."

Oikawa beams.

"Iwa-chan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! kudos/comments appreciated ♡


	2. second, logicism

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **second, logicism** : five signs he likes you, no matter how stupid he is.
> 
>   _[a collection of short iwaoi drabbles]_

**i. he acts different around you**

"Oikawa, I…"

Iwaizumi took a deep breath that shuddered his entire body, the exhale carrying with it an integral part of his being.

"There's something I have to say, and… I really need you to listen."

Oikawa nodded slowly, tilting his head.

"What is it, Iwa-chan?"

Another deep breath as Iwaizumi clenched his fists, feeling his nails digging into the flesh of his palm. His heart was racing just from standing in front of Oikawa; despite trying to remain calm and cool, Oikawa had an uncanny ability to make Iwaizumi nothing short of everything but.

He swallowed.

"I just wanted to say that…"

He opened his eyes and deadpanned at him.

"I don't think you have a fucking brain. I don't think you even  _try_  to have a brain, dumbass."

"Iwa-chan," Oikawa answered airily, not at all perturbed by the change in tone, "one does not  _try_  to have a brain. If one does not have a brain, it would be difficult to survive. Didn't Iwa-chan pass first year biology?"

"Let me rephrase," Iwaizumi snapped, glaring even more, "it's like you're not even trying to  _use_  your brain."

"Again, Iwa-chan—"

"Goddamnit, Oikawa!"

Groaning into his hands and sinking down to the floor against the closest wall, Iwaizumi peeked through his fingers at the mess Oikawa had created. He immediately groaned again, this time dropping his head and rocking back and forth, fingers tangled in his hair. "Why… why me… why…  _why_ …"

"It's not that bad, Iwa-chan," he heard Oikawa, hearing a clanging of something against metal. "This is easily fixable."

" _Do you know how much a new washing machine is going to cost?!_  My mom's gonna kill me!"

Oikawa hummed and Iwaizumi heard some more clanking and didn't even want to look to see what he was doing. "You also need new hangers."

_"That's not the main problem here!"_

Iwaizumi had been on his way home from the library when he received an alarming text and sprinted the rest of the way. Oikawa's parents were out of town and despite being perfectly capable of being on his own for a week, he decided to whine and pout, appealing to Iwaizumi's mother's sympathy and weaseling his way into living with him. It had started out fine; Oikawa was over so often that it felt like he lived there, but, in a traditional Oikawa fashion, he soon left Iwaizumi feeling murderous.

When he threw the door open, the only thing that Iwaizumi could tell was different about his house was the fresh smell of laundry, and he wasn't sure why that would warrant a  _'promise not to kill me?'_  text.

Then he turned down the hallway to where their washer and dryer were and understood.

"Why the fuck did you have rocks in your pockets?! Not just a rock but  _rocks_! What are you, six?!"

"Sixteen," Oikawa answered very seriously.

Iwaizumi wanted to shove Oikawa into the washing machine and turn it on.

There was one year where Oikawa forced Iwaizumi to go around the school and ask people to use one word to describe him. Being Oikawa's birthday, Iwaizumi had cooperated because on one day a year, he tried extra hard to have patience for him and make him happy.

Because despite Oikawa being Oikawa, he was still  _Oikawa_  to Iwaizumi.

Most girls answered that Oikawa was charming, good looking, flirty and for the ones who said he was obsessed, Iwaizumi just nodded, told them that he thought Oikawa was obsessed with volleyball too.

(A few of them had given him a strange look, told him that wasn't what they meant.)

And then most guys answered that he seemed cool or annoying and, for the members of Seijou's volleyball team,  _terrifying_.

None of them said the word that Iwaizumi used when reporting back:

_Stupid._

Oikawa was stupid. He was brilliant at volleyball and an excellent student, but when it came down to common sense matters, Oikawa was a grade-A moron and it seemed that nobody except Iwaizumi knew that. And at first he didn't know why, because he was  _so stupid_ , how could nobody else notice?

Then he realized, Oikawa worked hard to keep up his carefully curated image and he wouldn't risk jeopardizing over something stupid like  _laundry_.

He let himself dwell in self-pity for another ten seconds before sighing. Standing up, he could feel Oikawa peering at him; Iwaizumi begrudgingly looked up, exhausted after just  _three_  days of living with him.

"Get your laundry."

Oikawa looked astonished.

"Iwa-chan! Don't tell me, you'll wash them for me?!"

"…No, you fucking idiot, I was going to say let's go to the coin laundry place around the corner."

**ii. body language cues**

Iwaizumi wasn't one to get flustered easily, but one day, he walked head first into an open locker because he'd heard a cute girl laugh.

He assumed Oikawa's owl-like stare was because of his stupidity.

After almost two whole months of Oikawa pestering, constantly filling his ears with  _Iwa-chan has a crush? Iwa-chan likes her? Iwa-chan wants to hold her hand? Iwa-chan wants to put his—_

Iwaizumi had shoved a pillow in his face and wasn't sure if he could believe Oikawa when he claimed he was going to say  _arm around her shoulders._

For all his faults, the entire myriad of them, Oikawa did have a talent for getting dates. He boasted a success rate of almost one hundred percent and even if Iwaizumi tried to correct him, it would still be a solid 87% against the 96% Oikawa claimed. Hanamaki once asked what their bases for the numbers were. Iwaizumi explained that since Oikawa was an annoying bastard, he'd brag about the dates he got. And when he didn't get them, he'd sulk about it and make Iwaizumi take him out for shaved ice, so Iwaizumi had a good idea of the percentage.

Oikawa's basis, he continued in a monotonous voice, was his delusions.

But even if Oikawa was deluded and Iwaizumi had actual rough numbers, what it came down to was that Oikawa Tooru was still very good at getting people to go on a date with him.

Iwaizumi was well aware that he had the best resources when it came to asking someone out, but people didn't understand that asking Oikawa for a favor was the equivalent of selling Satan not only his soul, but also the souls of any future children and any of their grandchildren. It killed him on the inside because asking Oikawa meant inflating an ego that was more flexible than rubber. At some point, Iwaizumi felt, Oikawa's ego would get so big it would obliterate the universe.

People laughed, but they didn't understand how serious he was.

_"So Iwa-chan does want to ask her out."_

_Iwaizumi really wanted to reach across the table and slap the milkshake he'd bought Oikawa right out of his stupid hands._

_Refusing to answer that because it would be like asking him again, Iwaizumi folded his arms on the table and bowed his head, sighing and clenching his fists. They were in a café close to school; Iwaizumi had eventually given in because he didn't want to keep walking into inanimate objects at the sound of a laugh and Oikawa, being the annoying psychic he was, seemed to know from the moment Iwaizumi asked if he wanted to grab a snack after school._

_The world continued to spin despite Iwaizumi feeling like he was dying on the inside._

_When Oikawa still didn't say anything, so Iwaizumi had to grumble 'yes' through grit teeth. And when Oikawa still didn't say anything, Iwaizumi sighed again, felt the last piece of his dignity leave his body with that breath._

_"…I need your help to ask out a girl."_

_When he heard a hum, he begrudgingly looked up. Oikawa cradled his chin his hand and smiled a little too brightly for Iwaizumi's liking. It was a fine smile, but it was too shiny, too sparkly, Iwaizumi had told him once. Oikawa took another sip of his milkshake and Iwaizumi noticed that the tip was bent from his chewing when he set it down._

_He frowned._

_Oikawa didn't typically chew on straws. He liked to keep anything he touched as pristine looking as himself, to quote him._

_"Namiko-chan, right? She's really cute. She's a bit tall, but, well, Iwa-chan's short—"_

_"I'm five centimeters shorter-!"_

_"She's pretty too. Laughs a lot. Smiles even more. Is Iwa-chan planning on sapping her happiness?"_

_Iwaizumi slammed his palms down on the table, snapping 'forget it.' But he felt Oikawa's hand on his sleeve before he could even get one leg fully out of the booth, sitting back down and feeling embarrassment heating the back of his neck and his cheeks from the onlookers. He jolted a little to feel something cold press against his cheek and looked up to see the half finished milkshake. He reluctantly took a sip, half-heartedly glaring at Oikawa's more natural smile._

_"Get to know her," Oikawa said airily, resting his chin in his hand and looking out the window. "Find a few common interests and start talking about them. She's really nice, from what I've seen, so I think she'd be good for Iwa-chan."_

_Eyes looking over, Oikawa raised his eyebrows teasingly for a moment._

_"Be yourself, Iwa-chan. People naturally flock to you for a reason."_

And miraculously, it worked.

Shifting in his seat, Iwaizumi shook his head when Namiko asked if something was wrong. The restaurant they were in had been, of course, Oikawa's recommendation. He called it a good first date restaurant; the menu was diverse enough that most people would be satisfied, and yet refined enough that Iwaizumi could hide his messy eating habits.

(Oikawa got another pillow to the face for that.)

He reached for his water and stole a glance when he took a sip. There was little overhead lighting; candles at every table made for a fairly romantic setting. Her brown hair seemed dark with the absence of lighting, but the warm glow from the candle was enough to see her.

While not having gone on as many dates as Oikawa had, Iwaizumi had been on enough and knew enough about people to tell if a date was going well. She was laughing a lot; that was a good sign, he knew, and she kept playing with her hair, which was also a good sign.

She had a nice laugh, the kind of chiming airy sound that made Iwaizumi smile when he heard it. It reminded him of Oikawa's, his annoyingly polite and charming laugh that fooled everyone else and left Iwaizumi wanting to strangle his best friend. His patronizing, demonically angelic laugh that—

"Are you okay? You're… you're smushing your peas…"

"What? Shit—fuck, sorry—goddamnit—"

Iwaizumi took a deep breath.

"…Sorry for swearing."

She laughed again. The Oikawa Laugh, except she wasn't Oikawa, so it didn't make Iwaizumi want to hurl food across the table.

"It's fine, don't worry about it."

And then she raised a hand to tuck her hair behind her ear again, leaving Iwaizumi to reminisce about how Oikawa was always running his hand through his hair, making his disheveled hair even more tousled. Iwaizumi had seen some people try to do that with their hair and succeed only in making it messy, but somehow, Oikawa's tendrils always fell perfectly across his forehead, highlighting his eyes, making his smile even more boyishly cute.

That also made Iwaizumi want to punch him.

When Iwaizumi felt something warm on his hand, his first instinct was that the candle wax had somehow crawled across the table and onto his hand. But when he looked up, he saw Namiko's hand on his and immediately was grateful for the restaurant's dim lighting to hide his blush. Clearing his throat, he realized that was the wrong thing to do, because he felt Namiko pulling her hand back.

But with a sudden surge of courage, Iwaizumi reached out to take her hand in his. Their fingers laced together easily; her hand felt so much smaller than his, her fingers slender and skin almost impossibly soft.

And when she smiled at him, Iwaizumi returned the smile, but all he could think about was how holding her hand didn't ignite half as much electricity as holding Oikawa's did.

When he got home, Oikawa was in his bed, having decided to sleep over last minute.

Oikawa rolled over when Iwaizumi opened the door, looking up at him, already in his pajamas and showered. "Does Iwa-chan need advice for a second date now?" he teased.

Iwaizumi scoffed, shrugging off his jacket and hanging it up on the back of his door.

"Nah."

"What?" he heard and turned around to see Oikawa push himself up with a frown. "Did it not go well? What did Iwa-chan do?"

"Nothing, you ass," Iwaizumi grumbled. He shrugged and looked away. "She's cute, but… the connection's not there. Now piss off and you better not still be in the middle of the bed when I'm out of the shower."

Before he turned away fully, he could've sworn he saw Oikawa smile and sigh in relief.

**iii. he initiates**

"Are you two dating?"

"What?"

Iwaizumi frowned.

"No. What makes you think that?"

"Well," Hanamaki shrugged, "for starters, the fact that you're on a  _date_  right now."

"What?" Iwaizumi echoed, frown deepening. "What the hell makes you think that?"

Hanamaki stared at him.

"…Because you're on a picnic in the park with Oikawa."

"Asshole likes his picnics."

"…"

"…It grew on me. Piss off."

Hanamaki laughed before bidding his farewell, saying Matsukawa was waiting for him at the library. After he left, Iwaizumi was left to look around his surroundings. Iwaizumi didn't know red-and-white-checkered picnic blankets were real, but of course Oikawa would have one to match his fairytale worthy wicker basket. Tupperware containers and half wrapped bowls occupied most of the space; Iwaizumi was sipping on a juice box with his legs crossed when Oikawa came bounding back, smiling brightly as he took a seat next to Iwaizumi.

Normally Iwaizumi didn't think twice about this because, honestly, it wasn't the first time he'd gone on a picnic with Oikawa in the middle of the park. He stopped questioning it a long time ago; if Oikawa wanted something, he'd somehow always get it, because Iwaizumi just didn't have enough energy to fight Oikawa on everything and he had to pick and choose his battles very carefully.

But as he watched Oikawa make him a plate, he had to admit that Hanamaki brought up a fair point. It wasn't as if they were the only two people on a picnic, but when Iwaizumi looked around, he did note that they appeared to be the only two having a picnic while having a purely platonic relationship.

He finished his juice box.

"Iwa-chan, you want more salad?"

"No."

"Okay, here's some more."

Glaring but accepting the plate without any more arguing, Iwaizumi grumbled his gratitude and started eating as he watched Oikawa make himself a plate. Picnics, like all of Oikawa's obsessions, seemed to be inspired out of the blue and Iwaizumi would be dragged along. He was reluctant at first until Oikawa pointed out they were always either outside or eating, so this was just combining the two. When he put it that way, it sounded like Iwaizumi would be able to spend less time with him and soon realized that not only was that not the case, he never even tried for that.

He hadn't thought about it, but picnics did have a rather romantic connotation to them.

"Oikawa," Iwaizumi asked after a few more moments and Oikawa hummed in acknowledgement, "…is this a date? Did you ask me on a date?"

Oikawa looked over his shoulder, staring at Iwaizumi for a bit before smiling. He sat back and spun a few strands of yakisoba onto his fork. "What brings this up?" he asked easily, looking away for only a moment to make sure he had a proper forkful before back at him.

"Nothing," Iwaizumi mumbled, gesturing around. "…It's just that we're the only two people who aren't actually dating."

Oikawa hummed. "Does Iwa-chan want me to ask him on a date?"

"I'll punch your face in," Iwaizumi answered blankly.

Oikawa laughed and Iwaizumi's frown deepened because while he could make peace with a lot of Oikawa's annoying habits, his question dodging would always irritate him. "Oikawa—"

"Iwa-chan," Oikawa interrupted easily, tilting his head, "riddle me this, would you say no if I did ask you on a date?"

Iwaizumi stared at him and just sighed.

Oikawa had a habit of avoiding questions for fun and to irritate, but Iwaizumi picked the tendency up when it came to not wanting to admit something. If Oikawa didn't answer something, Iwaizumi, more often than not, was left trying to figure out what answer he was trying to not give. On the other hand, if Iwaizumi didn't answer, his transparency left his answer hanging between both of them.

He ignored the heat rising on the back of his neck, didn't have to look to know Oikawa was smiling.

"…Pass the damn dressing."

**iv. he compliments your appearance**

"You look fucking stupid."

Whining, Oikawa turned away from the mirror, comb still in hand and other just inches away from his hair. Iwaizumi had let himself in with the spare key the Oikawas had given him, hearing humming from a lit bathroom as he made his way upstairs. He'd first spotted an open jar of gel and plugged in blow dryer on the sink counter; Iwaizumi was ready to yell at Oikawa for being a moron when he looked up and saw his best friend with his hair slicked back, like he'd joined the mafia.

Then he was ready to yell at Oikawa for being a super moron.

"Iwa-chan's just jealous he doesn't  _have_  enough hair to do this," Oikawa huffed, turning back to the mirror as he went back to carefully combing his hair. "It looks good, right?"

"No," Iwaizumi answered monotonously, leaning a shoulder against the doorframe with crossed arms. "You look ridiculous."

"I think I need a leather jacket."

"Are you even listening to me?"

"Maybe a motorcycle…"

"You're definitely not."

Grumbling under his breath, Iwaizumi shook his head, bringing one hand up to his face. His best friend was an idiot and despite thinking it to himself at least two times a day, it never fully sunk in. Time and time again, Oikawa continued to push the boundaries of stupidity, flabbergasting Iwaizumi, leaving him to wonder what he'd done in his past life to deserve this.

Pushing himself off the wall he sighed, watched Oikawa examine his new hairstyle and try out a few poses in the mirror.

It was an out of body experience.

"Obviously you'll be at this for a while," Iwaizumi sighed, rubbing the side of his nose. "I'm gonna make a snack. You want popcorn or ramen?"

"Iwa-chan, come here," Oikawa said, never looking away from the mirror and gesturing for Iwaizumi with his hand.

"What? No."

And yet when Oikawa tugged at his shirt, Iwaizumi reluctantly stepped forward to stand by the sink with him with little resistance. Oikawa instructed him to stay still and Iwaizumi obeyed as he watched Oikawa dip his fingers into the gel and start working it through his hair. It was cool to the touch and with Oikawa's eyes fixated on the top of his head, Iwaizumi couldn't help but let his own wander over his face, following the curve of his jaw, noting his high cheekbones, lingering on his long lashes.

Even if Iwaizumi grumbled that too many girls were fooled by his appearances, he couldn't say he blamed them.

He winced when he felt a drop of the gel land on his cheek; Oikawa grinned, sang an unapologetic apology and wiped it up with his finger. He surveyed Iwaizumi for another moment before stepping back. "Done!"

Iwaizumi turned to look at himself in the mirror.

Oikawa beamed. "So?"

Iwaizumi looked at Oikawa through his reflection.

"At least not as stupid as you."

Reaching a hand up tentatively to feel his hair, Iwaizumi felt Oikawa sling his arm over his shoulders and smiled happily as he leaned in. "How much did you spend on this crap?" Iwaizumi asked. "How long's it gonna last, a week?"

"Clearly, this isn't an every day look," Oikawa explained calmly, making gestures with his free hand. "It's for special occasions!"

"What's the occasion, the funeral of your brain?"

Oikawa laughed again. As Iwaizumi kept staring at his hair, tugging at one strand that refused to stay gelled down, he saw Oikawa turn to face him. Out of reflex, he looked at him and scowled. "What?"

"Iwa-chan really does look good," Oikawa murmured, tilting his head and smiling. "Don't go to school like this, okay? I don't want more girls to fall for Iwa-chan."

Iwaizumi scoffed as Oikawa pulled away, announcing that he'd decided on popcorn after all. "Don't be stupid—wait, what do you mean 'more'?"

Oikawa glanced over his shoulder, having brought his arms over his head and shot him a grin.

"Iwa-chan, start boiling the water, okay? I'll add the eggs!"

**v. he remembers the details**

_"Favorite?" four-year-old Oikawa asked, staring at Iwaizumi._

_He nodded, pulling the lollipop out of his mouth._

_"Cherry's the best."_

Oikawa did a lot of stupid things, Iwaizumi thought sadly.

When he was five, he microwaved gummy bears in an attempt to soften them slightly to make them more edible, but he set the timer to a full minute.

When he was fifteen, he did the exact same thing and being drunk wasn't even a valid excuse because, if anything, he was only buzzed off of hard cider. The universe gave Iwaizumi this  _one_  win and made Oikawa a hell of a lightweight.

Iwaizumi twitched at hearing the hard candy scraping along Oikawa's teeth. Giving a sigh, he straightened in his seat and stretched his arms behind his head for a moment, leaning back and looking around his living room for a moment, hoped to identify some other sound to focus on. His mother had stepped out to run some errands, taking his little sister along with her, leaving just the two of them to do homework. And it was true, they did have homework to do.

It just sat in a growing pile as they focused on the taped volleyball game playing on the television.

"Can you stop?" he snapped finally.

Oikawa looked over, big eyes and arms draped across the back of the couch. His skin had been warm against the back of Iwaizumi's neck and he  _knew_  that Oikawa was fully aware his dancing fingers were tickling his shoulders.

He watched the white stick move whimsically, the bump in one cheek transferring to the other, the clicking along his teeth making Iwaizumi wince. He couldn't fathom how Oikawa could stand the sound because if it was loud to Iwaizumi, it had to be even worse to him.

Between them, Oikawa had the sweet tooth, but even so, he didn't eat candy too often, partly because of health but mostly because it was too sweet, even for him. However, when it came to desserts, Oikawa had always eaten both his and whatever Iwaizumi couldn't finish.

"Iwa-chan doesn't like candy?"

"I don't like hearing you sucking on it."

Iwaizumi realized his mistake in wording when he watched Oikawa's wide-eyed stare turn into a knowing smirk. Grumbling, he turned away and leaned back, feeling Oikawa's arm against his skin. "Shut up."

When Iwaizumi had come back from the kitchen with some chips, he had half-heartedly glanced at Oikawa with a piece of candy in his mouth. He had a tendency to chew on his lip or the inside of his cheek, and so Iwaizumi assumed he was finding another outlet for his oral fixation. He didn't think much of it; Oikawa did what Oikawa felt like and Iwaizumi just went along with it.

But he couldn't believe that someone would eat candy so noisily, especially when he didn't even look like he was enjoying it. Iwaizumi knew Oikawa well enough that if he liked something he was eating, he'd announce it or hum cheerfully. But he was sucking on this lollipop in utter silence, expression blank and focused.

Oikawa was picky to the point that if they were heating up a pizza with olives, Iwaizumi would send him upstairs or to another room as he painstakingly picked all of them off because if Oikawa knew that there had been olives on the thing at some point, he wouldn't shut up about tasting them.

"See?" Iwaizumi heard, then felt Oikawa lean forward and pull his arm away from behind him. "That one." Iwaizumi frowned to see Oikawa purposely touch his finger to the screen. "We have to keep an eye on him. He's good."

Iwaizumi watched the person Oikawa pointed at hit a perfectly positioned ball and shrugged. "That's nothing. I can receive that in my sleep."

Oikawa laughed and leaned back again. "Iwa-chan, arrogance doesn't look good on anyone besides me."

"You're doubting me?"

"Of course not," Oikawa nearly purred, and Iwaizumi saw him pull the lollipop out of his mouth, a brilliantly red candy at the end of the stick. "With me and my perfect tosses, Iwa-chan will knock anyone dead."

Ignoring Oikawa's inserted self-praise, Iwaizumi eyed the candy that Oikawa was now waving around as he spoke. "You hate cherry," he said finally, frown deepening. "You once stayed sick for two weeks because you refused to take cherry flavored medicine."

Oikawa wiggled his eyebrows and shot Iwaizumi a grin before bringing the candy back to his lips. "Maybe I've grown more accepting."

Iwaizumi just stared at him and decided to not honor that statement with an answer.

"Be more open-minded, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa continued airily and Iwaizumi heard a popping sound when he took the lollipop out of his mouth again. It was hard for him to fathom that Oikawa could be more annoying than normal, but it appeared candy brought him to an all new level.

Iwaizumi sighed and rubbed is temples.

"…Okay. So this is a thing, now? You and cherry lollipops?"

"No," Oikawa answered and Iwaizumi wanted to hit him, "I still hate cherry."

"You-!"

" _I_  still hate cherry," Iwaizumi heard Oikawa repeat, and when he looked up, it was just in time for Oikawa to gracefully lean in and kiss him. The artificially sweet cherry flavor was strong on his lips and even stronger on his tongue; it was a short kiss, sweet and the lingering afterwards left Iwaizumi's heart palpitating rapidly and breath caught in his throat.

When Oikawa pulled back, Iwaizumi wanted to lick his lips, but resisted. He could still feel Oikawa's hot breath still and was met with a half lidded gaze when he opened his eyes, still finding it hard to steady his breathing. He heard cheering; the game probably ended, he thought, but he couldn't stop staring at Oikawa, wondering why of all the times he wished for him to just shut up,  _this_  was the one time he actually obeyed.

Oikawa's smile widened and when he leaned in, Iwaizumi thought— _hoped_ —he'd kiss him again, but he just reached up to press the lollipop to his lips.

Even if Iwaizumi had grown out of his sweet tooth, he could easily see himself growing fond of cherry again.

"But Iwa-chan doesn't."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! kudos/comments appreciated ♡


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